Fifty Days of Gratitude: Day 21

When I was in high school, our music teacher (who was also our church choir director) took a group of us to hear an orchestra play at the nearby Junior College. It was the first time any of us had attended such an event.

I distinctly remember two things:

One, on the way there, she explained how the music was divided into movements and that, although there would be very intentional spaces between the movements, we were not to applaud until the entire piece was complete.

Two, during the performance, she leaned over to me and invited me to stop watching the musicians, but rather to close my eyes and try to hear the instruments individually and then open my eyes to hear them all together. It was a startling exercise in careful listening - isolating one sound, a violin or cello and then another and then hearing them all at once.

Since then I've been fortunate to hear many amazing orchestras and chamber groups. The Seattle Symphony remains at the top of that list. My Beloved and I even heard Vivaldi's Four Seasons in Venice, in the room where he wrote it. It was magical.

Tonight we heard the Masterwork's Choral Ensemble performance of Haydn's Mass In Time of War, featuring the Olympia Chamber Orchestra and the Chorale from Saint Martin's University. It was a lovely performance (although the audience needed the advice about not applauding during the movements, which they eventually received in the form of an announcement following intermission).

Whenever I am lucky enough to be at any sort of orchestral performance, I take Mrs. Priddy's advice and close my eyes and let my ears and mind single out the instruments. It makes it all the more remarkable when I see/hear them as one again.

Tonight's performance concluded with Elaine Hagenberg's arrangement of Deep Peace, which is a text I love. And, with apologies to John Rutter, I think this is my favorite arrangement of this piece as well.

Tonight I am grateful for Mrs. Martha Priddy, who instilled a love of music in our small town high school and the students she cared for so deeply.

Here are the words and a link to a lovely performance of Hagenberg's arrangement:

Deep peace of the running wave to you.

Deep peace of the flowing air to you.

Deep peace of the quiet earth to you.

Deep peace of the shining stars to you.

Deep peace of the gentle night to you.

Moon and stars pour their healing light on you.

Deep peace of God, the light of the world to you.